Science Diet

[furryfriends]

When we first got Koda his breeder had him on Science Diet. After looking at the ingredients, we soon switched him over to Innova puppy food. He also gets a half a can of wet food everyday. One site that helped us choose our dog food was: Dog Food Reviews - Main Index - Powered by ReviewPost

[alisonJ]

My Edie ate Prescription Diet T/D for several years. It was a good food for her, but I changed when we got a Westie who was (supposedly) allergic to chicken. Now they both eat Blue Buffalo Fish and Sweet Potato or Blue Buffalo Lamb and rice.

Edie gained a little too much weight when I made the switch. She is on a diet now, but it is slow going.

[mel Vincente]

Originally Posted by Ladymom

Hills/Science Diet isn't really a very good food. Vets carry it because Hills invests heavily in vet schools, teaches seminars, provides scholarships, etc, to encourage vets to recommend it.

It contains a lot of cheap fillers, but the worst is that many of their dry prescription foods contain BHT and Ethoxyquin as preservatives.

Ethoxyquin is listed and identified as a hazardous chemical by OSHA. It has a rating of 3 on a scale of 1 to 6, with 6 being super toxic requiring less than 7 drops to cause death. When manufactured by Monsanto, the containers are marked with the word POISON. Monsanto makes no representations and will not be responsible for damages of any nature whatsoever. The Department of Agriculture lists and controls Ethoxyquin as a pesticide.


Ethoxyquin
Promoted kidney carcinogenesis.
Significantly increased incidence of stomach tumors.
Enhanced bladder carcinogenesis.

BHA
Enhanced stomach and urinary bladder carcinogenesis.
Causes squamous-cell carcinomas in stomachs.
(Cancers of this type are among the most lethal and fastest acting, the swiftest effects being seen among animals with light colored fur.)

BHT
Promoted urinary bladder carcinogenesis.
Could be a promoter of thyroid carcinogenesis.
Studies have noted that BHA and other antioxidants, particularly Propyl Gallate and ethoxyquin, showed additional effects in inducing stomach hyperplasia and cytotoxicity.

According to Dr. Wendell Belfield, DVM, practicing veterinarian for some 26 years, both BHA and BHT are known to cause liver and kidney dysfunction and are banned in some European countries. He adds that ethoxyquin is suspected of causing cancer and that propylene glycol (a pet food ingredient closely related to anti-freeze) causes destruction of red blood cells.

Toxicology of BHA

WOW great info Thanks for that. I had my dog on it for 4 months while we were ruling out food allergies. (prescription dz dry)
I was unaware of those chemicals and what affect they had...

[Lalola]

My breeder made me promise that I would never feed science diet or any other food that has corn as an ingredient to lola. I am feeding her Innova and she loves it. This is a great site which rates different foods Dog Food Reviews - Main Index - Powered by ReviewPost

Also, make sure that you do not switch the food abruptly. You should blend his old and his new food for a few days before fully incorporating the new food alone. Best of luck!

[MeganS]

I've heard that it's not the best food, but Tucker LOVES it and he's gotten really healthy since he started eating it. He's lost the extra weight he had packed on and he has a lot more energy.

We will probably switch him at some point in the near future, but for now we're seeing really good results with it.

[BLEU BOY BARBER]

I use SCIENCE DIET!

I wanted to be like everyone else and feed my babbies the best and I have the income to do it and I was told to "NOT" feed anything but SCIENCE DIET.

Bleu Boy was a patient at TEXAS A&M for Atlanto Axial Subluxation in which we spent alot of money on his surgery.

I discussed his diet with many vets there and surgeons and students ect. and they all told me to keep him on SCIENCE DIET. I was really against it but thought the vets knew best.

I DO NOT HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH IT I have not heard any complaints and all 3 of my dogs are on it. They have scheduled times they use the bathroom and it is like clock work. I am very pleased with SCIENCE DIET!

[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by Ladymom

Hills/Science Diet isn't really a very good food. Vets carry it because Hills invests heavily in vet schools, teaches seminars, provides scholarships, etc, to encourage vets to recommend it.

It contains a lot of cheap fillers, but the worst is that many of their dry prescription foods contain BHT and Ethoxyquin as preservatives.

Ethoxyquin is listed and identified as a hazardous chemical by OSHA. It has a rating of 3 on a scale of 1 to 6, with 6 being super toxic requiring less than 7 drops to cause death. When manufactured by Monsanto, the containers are marked with the word POISON. Monsanto makes no representations and will not be responsible for damages of any nature whatsoever. The Department of Agriculture lists and controls Ethoxyquin as a pesticide.


Ethoxyquin
Promoted kidney carcinogenesis.
Significantly increased incidence of stomach tumors.
Enhanced bladder carcinogenesis.

BHA
Enhanced stomach and urinary bladder carcinogenesis.
Causes squamous-cell carcinomas in stomachs.
(Cancers of this type are among the most lethal and fastest acting, the swiftest effects being seen among animals with light colored fur.)

BHT
Promoted urinary bladder carcinogenesis.
Could be a promoter of thyroid carcinogenesis.
Studies have noted that BHA and other antioxidants, particularly Propyl Gallate and ethoxyquin, showed additional effects in inducing stomach hyperplasia and cytotoxicity.

According to Dr. Wendell Belfield, DVM, practicing veterinarian for some 26 years, both BHA and BHT are known to cause liver and kidney dysfunction and are banned in some European countries. He adds that ethoxyquin is suspected of causing cancer and that propylene glycol (a pet food ingredient closely related to anti-freeze) causes destruction of red blood cells.

Toxicology of BHA

Hills/Science Diet is something I would never feed. Unfortunately they have a lot of veterinarians brainwashed from the time they are in vet school (I know this because I'm in vet school and see it first hand )...just becauses a vet carries it does NOT mean it is a good food. You wouldn't go to a doctor for nutrition advise - you'd go to a nutritionist. Well, the same for our pets. Vets spend very little time learning about nutrition...I'd seek out a veterinary nutritionist. I definitely do not recommend Science Diet.

[Wylie's Mom]

I would not feed SD under ANY circumstances to my dogs. If you educate yourself about actual ingredients and WHAT they are and what they do to the body - you will be able to make the decision on your own. Once you see what is in SD, I doubt you will want to feed it - it is chock full of allergens, fillers - not to mention carcinogens.

Also - just ask MyFairLacy, who is in vet school, about the appalling practices of Hills in vet schools and the % vets get if you buy SD from them. It's called Marketing 101. Sick, but very true.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by BLEU BOY BARBER

I use SCIENCE DIET!

I wanted to be like everyone else and feed my babbies the best and I have the income to do it and I was told to "NOT" feed anything but SCIENCE DIET.

Bleu Boy was a patient at TEXAS A&M for Atlanto Axial Subluxation in which we spent alot of money on his surgery.

I discussed his diet with many vets there and surgeons and students ect. and they all told me to keep him on SCIENCE DIET. I was really against it but thought the vets knew best.

I DO NOT HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH IT I have not heard any complaints and all 3 of my dogs are on it. They have scheduled times they use the bathroom and it is like clock work. I am very pleased with SCIENCE DIET!

Most vets recommend it.
I think their extensive prescription line and the fact that vets are allowed to tour the factory and the money they get for selling it makes vets happy. I would feed it before Iams or Purina but some of it even contains ethoxyquin.

I used to feed it to Ellie. I thought she was doing well on it until I started feeding something else. I then realized it wasn't normal for a dog to throw up every week or two for no reason and it also wasn't normal to have a rough patch of fur or a constantly dry nose.

So we had a bad experience with the regular kind.
All dogs are different but I think vets would like to see everyone feeding it.

[MyFairLacy]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

I would not feed SD under ANY circumstances to my dogs. If you educate yourself about actual ingredients and WHAT they are and what they do to the body - you will be able to make the decision on your own. Once you see what is in SD, I doubt you will want to feed it - it is chock full of allergens, fillers - not to mention carcinogens.

Also - just ask MyFairLacy, who is in vet school, about the appalling practices of Hills in vet schools and the % vets get if you buy SD from them. It's called Marketing 101. Sick, but very true.

Just a little bit of info...

Science Diet and Purina offer vet students at Texas A&M University bags of their food for an 80% discount and many times for FREE. Most vet students own pets and are pretty broke..so of course they love receiving majorly discounted food for their pets. We all know that once you get in the habit of using something, you'll most likely continue...well, this is what these companies hope for. Vet students use it...they become vets and promote and sell it.

Also, a Hills representative teaches the Small Animal nutrition class...they also write the textbook that the class is taught from. Biased information??? Also, the amount of time spent on small animal nutrition is only a few weeks....A FEW WEEKS OUT OF 4 YEARS! Unless vets research nutrition themselves and actively pursue an education about it, they do NOT know much about nutrition. Fortunately more and more vets are realizing that nutrition is important...but most still fall back on the biased information that they were bribed into learning in school.

Vets simply sell Science Diet because they don't know any better...it's not that it is a good food, because it is not. If vets really did their research, they'd all realize and promote the benefits of a raw diet, homecooked meals, and the premium kibbles/canned foods out there.

[Woogie Man]

My brother has a Rhodesian Ridgeback that was being fed Eukanuba by the breeder. She was kept on this until she started having rashes at about 8 months old. The vet had her put on Science Diet and the rashes only got worse. So then my brother was having to take her in once a week for an allergy shot. I talked to him about what he was feeding her and gave him a bag of the food I use (Drs. Foster & Smith). She's been on it now for about 2 months and no more rashes and no more allergy shots. Also, earlier this year I was in the vet's office often due to new puppies and getting some of my other dogs their rabies shot. Seems like every time I was there, at least one person was in to get an allergy shot for their dog. Of course, the vet had them on Science Diet too as I saw quite a few buying bags of food while there. It's a vicious cycle but very good business for the vet. It's a shame because you know that the folks at Science Diet know better but won't upgrade their formula to something more healthy. It's confusing for the average pet owner to know what to feed but the easy thing to remember is what to avoid.....any food that has corn, wheat or meat by-products in them. Any food that avoids those ingredients usually doesn't have chemical preservatives and will likely have the omega acids and digestive enzymes in it. This will at least put you in the ballpark of a quality food.

[Ladymom]

Originally Posted by MyFairLacy

Just a little bit of info...

Science Diet and Purina offer vet students at Texas A&M University bags of their food for an 80% discount and many times for FREE. Most vet students own pets and are pretty broke..so of course they love receiving majorly discounted food for their pets. We all know that once you get in the habit of using something, you'll most likely continue...well, this is what these companies hope for. Vet students use it...they become vets and promote and sell it.

Also, a Hills representative teaches the Small Animal nutrition class...they also write the textbook that the class is taught from. Biased information??? Also, the amount of time spent on small animal nutrition is only a few weeks....A FEW WEEKS OUT OF 4 YEARS! Unless vets research nutrition themselves and actively pursue an education about it, they do NOT know much about nutrition. Fortunately more and more vets are realizing that nutrition is important...but most still fall back on the biased information that they were bribed into learning in school.

Vets simply sell Science Diet because they don't know any better...it's not that it is a good food, because it is not. If vets really did their research, they'd all realize and promote the benefits of a raw diet, homecooked meals, and the premium kibbles/canned foods out there.

You can go to the Hills website and see their involvement in vet schools.

http://www.hillsvet.com/hillsvet/stu...ms.hjsp?JSESSI

[Yorkieluv]

I agree with you all...Hill's does not make top quality food by any means. I just wanted to point out that only their dry foods contain ethoxyquin, but of course, they don't use the best ingredients in the canned either...

[Ladymom]

Originally Posted by Yorkieluv

I agree with you all...Hill's does not make top quality food by any means. I just wanted to point out that only their dry foods contain ethoxyquin, but of course, they don't use the best ingredients in the canned either...

Yes, and as I said in my other post, it's only the dry prescription food that contains ethoxyquin and BHT.

The canned food contains crummy ingredients, but no ethoxyquin. When Lady was diagnosed with diabetes years ago, my vet sent me home with a case of canned W/D. I opened the first can and it was YELLOW from all the corn! It made no sense to me why you would feed a dog with a compromised immune system such poor quality food. I never even finished the first case.

[Yorkieluv]

And they use pork liver in foods that are given to liver compromised dogs which is very hard on their livers, is high in purines, and produces high amounts of ammonia...
The canned L/D does not contain it, but others like k/d, s/d, etc. do...